I 94. A 'Snake Room' of Domestic Cult; ' Snake Tubes', their
Origin and Survival.

Room in private house for Domestic Snake Cult; Utensils deposited in

large jar; Miniature < Milk Jugs' as in Temple Tomb; Bowls for offerings

as in 'Spring Chamber ; Cylindrical vessels with cups attached—for snakes to

drink from ; Analogous ritual 'tubes' of sanctuaries at Gournia, &c.—with

rustic figures of Snake Goddess ; Theory that the 'tubes' were for chtkonic

libations invented ad hoc ; Real origin of ' snake tubes' from Minoan drain

sections—two varieties of these adapted; Looped class of' tubes' thus explained—

cording of pipe sections ; Simpler class, without loops, the earlier ; Early type

at Kumasa; Common Ring Snake a haunter of drains—still abounds on

site of 'Knossos ; Inference from origins—ritual ' snake tubes' not libation

vessels; Tripod snake table—Lithuanian parallel; Snake cauldron (?) of

seal-impression; Tripod hearth with ashes inside; Ritual transportation

of ashes—Russian custom ; Snakes as spirits of the household,' Snake house

guardian among Greeks; Household snake in Macedonian village—-fed by

British officers ; Ritual vessel of honeycomb shape with feeding snake; Cretan

snake attacks wild honeycomb for grubs.; Other snake vessels from domestic,

shrine; Honey in food offerings to snakes—sacred snake of Erechthaon ';

Triple Cups of Diklaean Libation Table—? one for /juMxp^toi' ; Snake table

in Egypt; Knossian ' Snake Room' contrasted with primitive sanctuaries at

Gournia, &c.; 'Snake Room' cult purely domestic—the Shrines show further

religious evolution; Snake attributes in Palace Shrines, of terrifying nature;

Chronology of 'Snake-tube' sanctuaries; Knossian 'snake room' relics

assigned to L.M. II; Rustic clay idols of sanctuaries—cylindrical base

derived from belt-shaped M.M. /a skirt; Survivals of old Snake cult m

Sub-Miuoau and Geometrical times; Rhodiau ' Snake tube' of Geometrical

date ; ' Snake tube' assimilated to cult of Cyprian Goddess—becomes a dove-cot.

Repository of Objects belonging to Domestic Snake Cult in Room
of Private House at Knossos-

Room in Amongst the numerous discoveries of 1 q ^0 nothing was more interesting

Private r • 1 qp 1

House for than the contents of a repository in a small chamber of a private House <

snakf'0 little South-West of the ' South-West Treasury House'. It opened on to

cult- a passage-way which was however only partially preserved.

By the entrance of the little room stood a large jar which, as no

infrequently was the case with larger vessels, had survived a change in